KEPCO customers asked to cut back on power usage by 10%

Customers are also being asked to install 10 solar panels on their roofs.

KEPCO will pay you $0.53 kWh for harvesting solar energy and feeding it onto the public grid. Home owners are now the new utility.

By 2013 there will be 100,000 new millionaires in Japan, ie., those first 100,000 home owners who install 20 solar panels on their homes.

You can make alot of money harvesting solar.

But the cuts sparked complaints from businesses and fears manufacturers would move production overseas.

Well founded fears indeed. Japan already has some of the most efficient (energy wise) manufacturing plants in the world. Energy prices are already much higher than most countries, and combine restrictions on use and suddenly there is no reason for factories to chose Japan over cheaper places. Hell, most car companies already make American market cars in America, and European market ones there as well, what's to say that the next Honda or Toyota you buy in Japan was actually made in the USA or Malaysia ?

Japan needs to start up their existing and already stress checked nuclear plants to avert a financial disaster as companies leave faster than ever before.

Cut the middle man out. Let people sell their solar pOwer energy to their neighbor directly. That comment nameless kepco shamelessly promoting themselves. They take that energy and sell it to your neighbor for double the price.

KEPCO customers asked to cut back on power usage by 10%

Be prepared alarmist KEPCO and other nuke electricity suppliers will repeat this at every opportunity to scare people, cut down on demos and restart remaining reactors. the truth is that theres is enough electricity to go round even during summer.

Rick KisaJun. 24, 2012 - 01:43PM JST

Be prepared alarmist KEPCO and other nuke electricity suppliers will repeat this at every opportunity to scare people, cut down on demos and restart remaining reactors. the truth is that theres is enough electricity to go round even during summer.

Even on a very cool sunday, they were already at 75%, and on a warm (L24C/H28C) weekday, they were getting over 85%. If the temperatures happen to stay above 30C day round and peak over 35C in the summer (which doesn't start until late July), they can have over 2500MW demand. If they hit 2010 level heat and energy use, it will be up to 31MW on production that is at most 28MW with Oi operational (between 25 and 28MW depending on hydro electric water levels). Even if they manage to get 10% (which KEPCO estimates as being 4% if they are lucky, near 0 if like last year) power savings, they will be flirting with disaster and sure to implement rolling blackouts. If the temperatures stay cool, they might scrape by without blackouts, if it gets hot, it gets dark.

zichiJun. 25, 2012 - 12:32AM JST

Power cuts for a maximum of 2 hours in selected areas does not equal a disaster. "if it gets hot it will get dark". All major Kansai companies and gov't's have stated they will reduce their power demand by 20%,

Yes, by being paid to do so at the expense of higher bills for everyone else. If paying companies not to use electricity is not considered a disaster mitigation plan, I guess Japan has bigger issues to worry about. Most people forget about the millions of yen that KEPCO is giving in exchange for NOT buying electricity.

Additionally, some companies in the area (wider distribution area including KEPCO suppliers like Chubu) have decided that their contribution will be to shut down facilities and lay off workers, like Toyota just did for their NA Yaris plants in the Chubu electric distribution zone. I hardly call that an improvement over last year, and certainly not over the year before.

and the same KEPCO power chart also shows that this year, the power consumption is less than last year. Just look at the green line for last years demand.

That same chart is also for a Friday, which generally has 10-20% more energy use than a Sunday. And also 6 degrees hotter. I'm more surprised that the green line was so low compared to this year.

zichiJun. 25, 2012 - 01:09AM JST

Which companies are being paid not to use power? You are starting to say some very strange things?

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nb20120530a3.html#.T-c_qbW4VhE explains about the system made to reduce corporate demand. I'm sure the numbers aren't too high, but it is higher than zero.

I look at the KEPCO power chart every single day, since I actually live in Kansai. Everyday since KEPCO put the chart on the web, the power demand this year has been less than last year.

Yes, and no. Most days have been less, but most days have also been cooler. Japan has had a good deal more cloud cover than expected. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean it will continue.

zichiJun. 25, 2012 - 01:28AM JST

The KEPCO power chart you quoted from wasn't for Friday, it was for Sunday. The date is always on the chart.

Sunday Jun. 24th 2012, a year earlier (which is how the graph works, 365 days no leap year days) would be Friday Jun. 24th 2011. If you check the max temperatures for the two days, you get 34C in 2011 and 28C in 2012. If you check today's graph compared to yesterday, you can see that they are already at 20% more use than yesterday, even with maximum temperatures being identical. You can also see that even on a Saturday, the energy use was through the roof last year, due to 33C peak temperature after two days of equally hot temperatures. So far we are actually below average temperature and actually very similar in overall weather as 2010.

Everyday since KEPCO put the chart on the web, the power demand this year has been less than last year.

I think basroil is accurate on this. The power demand this year has been less than last year because the temperature is lower?

[Osaka]

2011/6/23 33.4℃, 2011/6/24 33℃

2012/6/23 27.3℃, 2012/6/24 28.2℃

http://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/view/daily_s1.php?prec_no=62&prec_ch=%E5%A4%A7%E9%98%AA%E5%BA%9C&block_no=47772&block_ch=%E5%A4%A7%E9%98%AA&year=2011&month=6&day=&elm=daily&view=

http://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/view/daily_s1.php?prec_no=62&prec_ch=%E5%A4%A7%E9%98%AA%E5%BA%9C&block_no=47772&block_ch=%E5%A4%A7%E9%98%AA&year=2012&month=6&day=&elm=daily&view=

KEPCO keeps moving the goal posts. First it stated without starting the Oi reactors there would be a 15% shortage. Then it stated with the Oi reactors and additional over night pumped storage there would a shortage of 7% in July, and 6% in August.

The below link clearly states that during August with the assumption that No.3 Oi Reactors are in operation, the projected shortage will be 9.2%.

http://www.kepco.co.jp/pressre/2012/pdf/0622_4j_04.pdf

Perhaps you could link me to your source.